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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/30127044">Fox Fur</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khaelis/pseuds/Khaelis'>Khaelis</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Assassin's Creed - All Media Types</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Established Relationship, F/F, Fluff</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-03-18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-16 02:40:04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,689</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/30127044</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khaelis/pseuds/Khaelis</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Randvi loses something precious.<br/>Hopefully, Eivor can do something about it.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Eivor/Randvi (Assassin's Creed)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>96</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Fox Fur</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>There you go, one more story. <br/>I knew I'd be weak.<br/>I just love them.</p>
<p>I hope you'll enjoy this short story- thank you forever reading!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Each sunrise, Eivor was reminded of how blessed she was. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The morning light was already bright when she crawled out of her slumber, but for once, she wasn't worried. Not in any hurry to go anywhere. Nothing important to do, nothing to go and save or conquer, nothing else to do but savour the moment.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Randvi was still sleeping, wrapped around her body, head resting on her shoulder, soft snores coming out of her mouth. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eivor chuckled to herself. It filled her with joy to see the other woman like this. She knew the strategist always had too many things weighing on her mind, that she worried too much, that she struggled to ignore her duties for more than a day. But this morning, she was free to just let herself live without a care for the rest of the world. Eivor pressed a soft kiss on her forehead and trailed her fingers over the naked curve of her waist. The night before had been beautiful. Lots of mead, lots of songs, lots of laughter and love. It partly explained the sleep still clinging to her eyes and the ache at the back of her head. But she already cherished the memory of that night. What she remembered of it, at least.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Is it morning already?" Randvi mumbled as she stirred against her lover, burying her face deeper in the crook of her neck. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Close to noon, I believe," Eivor answered - the sun was bright and the air warm, the adjacent hall already bubbling with conversations and music. "We should head back to Raventhorpe soon."</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Just a moment longer," she sighed before she snuggled deeper under the covers, closer to the warrior.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The moment turned into an hour before they finally got up, a whole hour of kissing and hugging and simply being together. When these moments had been quite rare just over two winters before, they had become a habit. Although used to it, it didn’t make waking up next to each other dull. Eivor always loved these moments, reminded that they could now freely share their love and not worry about the consequences.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Content and well-rested, they started to get dressed. A few compliments, a few kisses, maybe a few grumbles as the lingering slumber made it harder to slip their legs into their trousers. And the tragedy happened.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"It's gone," Randvi said anxiously, searching under the covers of the bed, rummaging through drawers and bags, checking every nook and corner of the room they had been offered after the wedding party. “Do you remember seeing it before we went to bed?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It took Eivor a second to wonder what Randvi may have lost - they hadn’t brought much with them to the wedding, apart from gifts that had already been offered. She looked around, then at Randvi, and she saw it. Or did </span>
  <em>
    <span>not</span>
  </em>
  <span> see it. Randvi’s shoulders looked almost bare without the fox fur draped over them. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eivor was worried. The fur had been a gift from Randvi’s father, just before she had been married to Sigurd. A parting gift the red-haired woman adored, cherished, and refused to take off even on the hottest day of English summer. Except the night before.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“You removed it after your third horn and your second dance,” Eivor said, placing a comforting hand on the small of her back. “You complained it was too hot. Don’t worry, my love, someone will have found it and kept it safe for you.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Eivor spent the better part of the afternoon asking the villagers and their neighbours if they had seen a fox fur, investigated every lead she was given, ended up tracking the thieves.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She was devastated to find the once bright orange and white, thick and soft fur in a puddle of mud, torn apart by hands that must have wanted it all to themselves to sell it for a few silvers. Even the golden brooch was half-drowned in the brown matter, bent, as if it had been stepped on by a massive foot. It was ruined. She put the remains in her bag, hoping a very good tanner or a magician might be able to fix it. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>When she had to stop hoping, she told Randvi the truth and gave her the tatters of red fur - cleaned and brushed, but tatters all the same. A sad image compared to what it used to be.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Thank you, my love,” Randvi said, carefully spreading the fur at the foot of their bed. “At least it is back where it belongs.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Eivor dried the tears from the other woman’s cheeks with gentle brushes of her thumbs. She promised herself she would do whatever she could to ease her pain.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>***</span>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"I am sorry, Eivor, but I cannot help you."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The drengr sighed and her shoulders slumped with obvious defeat. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The idea was good, but it was putting it into practice that proved to be delicate. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Petra, </span>
  <em>
    <span>please</span>
  </em>
  <span>," Eivor almost begged, refusing to take a step back from the doorway, lest the huntress would escape. "I don’t know who else to turn to. I am merely looking for advice, surely you can do me that favour?"</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"I wish I could, but you’re asking for too much. No arrow, no axe, no traps? I’m a hunter, I cannot charm one into dying from natural causes. The best you could do is to catch one with your bare hands and strangle it. That’s a skill I don’t possess."</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"What about poison?"</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"You told me you wanted it to die a honourable death?"</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"I did, although I now realise it is a bold wish."</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"A wish I cannot fulfill. I’m sorry, Eivor, but until you change your mind, my abilities and knowledge will be of no use to you. You will have to kill the fox yourself."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>***</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>More than two months had passed since Eivor decided she ought to replace Randvi’s fur with another, and she was no closer to seeing it done. It wasn’t for lack of trying. Each time she sailed into another raid and rode into another battle, each time she walked into forests or ran down hills, she kept her eyes open in the hope to see a fox she could catch. She had seen plenty of them - the creatures were common in these lands, and it wasn’t rare to see one hunting for a bird or a rabbit, chasing after butterflies or sniffing for worms. They were fast, too fast to capture without any kind of trap or weapon. But she refused to kill one with tools that would give too much of an advantage. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She wanted the gift to mean something. She didn’t want the fur of a fox dead of old age, tanned by a man with poor skills.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Somewhere behind a bush, almost covered by the sound of her horse trotting on dry earth, high-pitched yaps could be heard. She reined the horse to a stop and pricked up her ear, trying to listen for any sound that could announce danger. Everything was calm. Except for the yaps, behind the bush.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Ever alert and cautious, she still took her axe from her belt and jumped down the mare to go investigate the odd sounds. Carefully, silently, she circled the bush, frowning at the yaps that grew louder, quicker. Among the sparse leaves, she saw them. A mother and her three cubs. The mother was dead. A wolf, Eivor thought as she examined the holes big fangs had left in its neck. Why the wolf hadn’t feasted on its prey, she didn’t know. Judging by the blood soaking its chops, turning the white fur dark red, the animal must have fought back to protect its little ones. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eivor had found one. It had died with honour. And it was beautiful.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>***</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Eivor saw Randvi in the distance as she led her horse through Ranventhorpe. The strategist didn’t look too pleased, her arms crossed over her chest and what seemed to be an accusing stare on her face. Eivor flashed her a smile and a sheepish shrug - yes, she was late, she had been supposed to come back at least three days earlier, but she hadn’t had the choice. The best tanner she knew had built his workshop near Whisby, which lengthened her hunting trip considerably. Randvi wouldn’t be happy, especially since she had had to leave the deer and rabbits she had hunted before finding the gift. She wasn’t coming back empty handed, but to Randvi, it would look like she had. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eivor thought it was worth it.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Eivor, you’re back!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Go away, Knud, it’s my turn!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s not, Sylvi, stop lying!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You got the best axe last time, it’s </span>
  <em>
    <span>my</span>
  </em>
  <span> turn!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No it’s not!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes it is! Right, Eivor?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Eivor chuckled at the children’s banter and jumped off the horse, careful not to shake the bag she was holding. The three of them were on her instantly, pulling on pieces of her armors, reaching for the bag, clutching at her leg while trying to push each other away. Eivor was tempted to crack a smile at all the flowery language they threw at each other - language she had taught them, for the most part.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Peace, children, it’s everyone’s turn today,” she said as she started to walk toward the edge of the forest bordering the village. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The children jogged behind her, excitement adding an extra spring to their steps, and they dutifully followed the warrior into the clearing where they would be hidden from prying eyes. The boy and the two girls gathered around Eivor who was kneeling on the grass, pulling on the rope that kept the canvas bag closed. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“It moves!” Eira shrieked, pointing at the bag that seemed to have a life of its own.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It does,” Eivor grinned at the child’s enthusiasm. “Now, you need to be quiet. You might scare them if you are too loud. They are still very small, they won’t bite you, so don’t be scared. Don’t hold them too tight, but don’t let them fall. They are fragile. Do you understand, little ones?”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They all nodded with pinched lips, straight backs and serious frown painted over their young faces. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eivor reached into the bag and pulled out one of the cubs with a gentle grip. The children gasped at the sight of the tiny animal and Sylvi flinched when Eivor placed it into her hands.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s alright, Sylvi, you won’t hurt it,” the warrior reassured as she pulled a second cub from a bag, then a third.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s licking me,” Eira giggled, burying her nose in the soft fur of the animal. “It’s pretty.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Now, you need to take care of them. Bring them to the hut where we found Mouse, they will be safe there.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Where is their mama?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She’s gone. But I trust you to look after them. Feed them with milk from the cattle farm and keep them warm with covers. Remember, they are living creatures that deserve to be treated well. Now go, if someone sees them they will be taken away.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Thanks Eivor! That’s the best gift ever!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Thank you Eivor!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I love him already!” Knud finished before the three of them cradled their cub close to their chest and started to head for the hut.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Eivor knew it was a big responsibility for children so young, but she also knew the cubs wouldn’t have survived alone in the forest. At least, they had a chance to live. She smiled at the boy who claimed his would be the strongest and the fastest, while the girls argued about names and the colour of the cover they should steal from Yanli. The cubs were in good hands.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>***</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“What kind of mischief have you been up to?” Randvi asked with a smile hanging on her lips.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why would you think I have been up to any kind of mischief at all?” Eivor smiled back, drawing her lover into a warm embrace.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Because that is all you ever do. I saw you with the children. You didn’t give them anything dangerous again, did you?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You're still cross about the axes, aren't you? To my defense, the blacksmith assured me they were so blunt they couldn’t cut through straw. But no, what I gave them is not dangerous. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Yet</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Eivor…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I promise the children will be safe.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Fine,” Randvi conceded with a sigh. “At least, tell me why you are three days late and brought not even one rabbit back from your hunt." </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Eivor chuckled and pressed a kiss to her lips -  it usually was a good way to ask for her forgiveness. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"It's a surprise."</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Will I like it?"</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"I hope so."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>***</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The longhouse was quiet, the silence only broken by the snores of a few warriors scattered over the carpets and the benches - too drunk to find their way back to the barracks. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eivor had wanted to wait, to make sure they wouldn’t be interrupted. She now hoped Randvi would still be up. With her gift wrapped into a piece of linen, safely tucked under her arm, she went searching for the strategist. The war room was empty, but the candles were still burning in the adjacent chambers. Randvi must still be awake.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eivor peaked into the room and her heart thudded louder in her chest at the sight. It was not often that she could observe the woman this way. She was used to seeing her in her many blue layers, cloak and armor, necklace falling on her chest and thick belts around her waist. She was also used to seeing her wearing nothing more than a smile or a pretty blush. Both were equally beautiful. But to see her undressing was something else. More intimate. It reminded her of what their relationship had become  and she loved it.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I know you’re there, Wolf-Kissed,” Randvi said softly as she removed her necklace. “Come in.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Eivor did not think too long before she accepted the invitation and joined her by the bed. Unable to wrap her arms around the woman like she usually did, she pressed a kiss on the nape of her neck and let her breath tickle her skin.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“I come bearing a gift,” Eivor smiled, waiting for Randvi to turn around.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Do you?” Randvi raised an eyebrow - although there was no mistaking the sparkle of amusement in her eyes.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I do. It comes a bit too late, but it took some time to have it ready.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What is it?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Open it.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Eivor watched intently as Randvi unfolded the linen cloth that covered the gift. She hoped she would like it. She was a bit worried it would be a sad reminder of what had been lost, she was scared Randvi wouldn’t want it, or would refuse it. It might have been a good idea, or a very bad one. Either way, it was too late to turn back.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The fire-haired woman remained silent as she revealed the fox fur. She brushed her fingers against its softness and looked at it in awe.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Eivor, it’s…” she started with a tinge of emotion in her voice - and the drengr was quite pleased with her reaction. “It’s beautiful.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I felt responsible for what happened to the other. If you hadn’t come with me to that wedding, it wouldn’t have been stolen. I know how much you loved it and how much it meant to you. It’s not the same, but I thought…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You thought well, my love. It’s perfect. Thank you.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Eivor was relieved and, feeling lighter, took the fur to wrap it around Randvi’s shoulders. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“This fox was a protector. Fought a wolf to keep its cubs safe. Just like you protect all of us. You do so much for the clan, Randvi. You do so much for me. I’m so grateful to have you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And I’m grateful to have you.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They shared a kiss, and another, and another, until kisses weren’t enough and they had to bring their bodies and their hearts closer together.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Randvi made sure to keep the fur close, hung it on the headboard of the bed. She didn’t want to lose that one. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
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